Given evidence from the Lung Health Study showing that smoking cessation “can have a substantial effect on subsequent mortality, even when successful in a minority of participants,” it has become imperative to offer smoking cessation services to all current smokers, especially those who are at highest risk. The elderly belong to this group. Paradoxically, they are often overlooked as prime target clients in such programs. Part of the reason lies…
One hundred seventy-seven social workers registered initially, of whom 154 workers (response rate, 87.0%) completed the immediate posttraining questionnaire, 151 workers (85.3%) responded at 3 months, 153 workers (86.4%) responded at 6 months, and 139 workers (78.5%) responded at 12 months. Table 1 summarizes the respondent profiles longitudinally. There was an initial large improvement in social workers knowledge (Fig 1, top left, a), attitude, and self-perceived competence (Fig 1, top…
Elderly persons who smoke tend to be long-term, heavy, and highly addicted smokers who are at the highest risk for smoking-attributable disease and mortality. Quitting smoking even at an older age can yield substantial benefits. However, individuals in this vulnerable group are less likely to receive smoking cessation interventions than younger people. Therefore, the US Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has actively promoted smoking cessation in the elderly….